‘He’s a jerk,’ I whisper directly into Eliza’s ear now.
‘You know him?’ Eliza says to me in a barely audible whisper as the buttons light up slowly on the elevator panel in front of us and we rise up the skyscraper.
‘Tell you after,’ I mouth, with a shake of my head, let the Christmas muzak mask the silence.
His presence in the elevator makes me feel odd for some reason. He stands with a tall frame, exuding a strong aura. No, I know why I feel odd, it’s because I should give him a piece of my mind for almost knocking me off my feet! But as usual I just can’t summon up the nerve. His shoulders are so broad he appears to take up twice the space of the two suits on either side of him. The leather jacket is strained, the seams pulled taut across his muscular back, emphasising the contours of his shoulders. He’s at least a head above the other two in height. He must be at least six foot two. I notice now his snug denim jeans and how they fit over his legs, the fabric conforming to the shape of his thighs and calves. The collar of his well-worn jacket is turned up, and the burnt orange hat slightly threadbare at the back from where it’s been pulled on so many times. He clears his throat. Then, I notice his fists are clenched tightly. I lean forward again to listen to their hushed conversation.
‘So glad you changed your mind. We’d all but given up on you arriving. Frederick’s keen to show you the figures and we know you’ll be impressed. It’s a no-brainer. You’ve made the right decision,’ one of the suits says as the elevator shudders to a halt again. The three of them exit and more people file out behindthem. The elevator doors close slowly. Surprisingly, we are alone again. I exhale a shaky breath.
‘What’re you talking about? Why is he a jerk?’ Eliza asks staring oddly at me.
‘I saw him running into the building earlier. He ran me off the sidewalk, nearly got me knocked over and never stopped to apologise!’ I move my hand to my hip, my fingers tapping rhythmically off my hip bone as I try to gather my thoughts.
‘So, he’s a jerk. A sexy jerk, I might add. But he seemed very out of place I thought, did you not? Ryan and Frederick’s mini-me’s were tiny beside him. Looked like a serious convo. That air was tense.’ Eliza makes a small hole with her mouth and blows out air as our elevator rises up through the towering skyscraper.
My palms are clammy. I wipe them down the sides of my wool coat. This meeting with Amanda is making me more nervous than I’d expected. The truth is if I don’t get this promotion, I really will have to look for another job, and after all the hard years I’ve put in atUltimate Locations Wedding Magazine,that would be disastrous. I know, just as Amanda does, that I’m going to find it very difficult to get a job at another magazine without the proper qualifications on paper. And although it’s not the first time Eliza has mentioned me going out on my own with my online wedding location business, I just would never have that kind of confidence.
‘Yeah, looked tense alright. Anyway, I want to forget about him.’ I squeeze my paper cup thoughtfully.
‘He did have a very nice ass though. Peachy.’ Eliza makes a squeezing action with her cupped fist.
‘Did he? I didn’t notice. What were we saying?’ I finish the coffee, grateful for the energy it’s providing.
‘I guess I was saying I’m so ready for the white picket fence and the maternity dungarees. I’m ready to sit in Krispy Kreme all day and scroll through Insta judging people.’ Eliza adjusts herfringed bag over her shoulder with a swish of her plait as our elevator stops on the sixty-fifth floor. We step out into the long, shiny scarlet red tiled corridor and glamorous reception area ofUltimate Locations Wedding Magazine.
‘Hi Maggie. Hey Eliza.’
‘Speak of my devil,’ Eliza hisses as Ben Laird strides towards us.
‘You’re never normally in at this hour, Maggie?’ He stops, stands with his trademark stubby pencil behind his ear.
‘See you for carpool at five-thirty, I promise to make the ride fun!’ Eliza performs a wiggly fingered one-handed wave at Ben, winks at me, then sashays on into the circular writers’ room across the hall. The room where they write all about true love and the perfect wedding day. The room I so badly want to be a part of.
‘Breakfast meeting,’ I tell him stepping back. ‘What has you up here on the sixty-fifth?’
‘I was dropping some urgent travel documents from Frederick in to Amanda, I was hoping to bump into you actually, I got two tickets to Jimmy Fallon tonight, if you’re free?’ Ben wraps his arms around himself.
‘Ben. We need to talk.’ I drop my head a little, I’m not good at this but it has to be done even though I need to move it.
Ben nods. His work suit, as always, looks too big on him. The grey material hangs off his shoulders.
‘Oh, I see. It’s alright. We really don’t. I get it.’ He unravels his hug, links his hands together, swings them in front of him. He’s shorter than me and he looks so vulnerable. I feel terrible but I was completely honest from the start.
‘You’re such a nice guy, I’ve had the best time hanging with you, but I thought I made it clear I’m not looking for a relationship,’ I say carefully. ‘I so don’t want to lead you on in any way.’ I keep my voice low to protect our privacy in the busycorridor.
‘I see.’ He repeatedly nods. ‘And don’t worry, you were crystal clear with me, I just hoped our friendship might develop into something else. My bad.’ But he laughs it off, scratching the back of his neck.
‘I’m sorry,’ I tell him, my voice soft and sincere.
‘Don’t be. You’re right, I do want to settle down. I want marriage and the white picket fence, and I do want to have kids soon. A gang of them.’ Ben’s shoulders raise up high like he’s perfectly comfortable with how he feels. ‘But I’d love for us to stay friends, maybe just not outside the building .?.?.’ He trails off but I nod in understanding.
I can’t believe the coincidence. ‘I understand, Eliza’s literally just said the same thing to me.?.?. that she’s single and looking for her special man and that picket fence.’ Not so subtly I drop that one in, glance at the time on my phone. ‘I better get a move on,’ I say.
‘Really?’ His eyes light up as he steps past me into the elevator behind us. ‘She’s amazing, I just presumed she was in a relationship?’
‘Nope. Single. She wants an army of kids too, plus I know for a fact she loves Jimmy Fallon. Merry Christmas, Ben!’ I call to his disappearing back as the elevator door slides shut.
I need full concentration now. There have been enough distractions already this morning. Putting my hand inside my coat pocket for my lip balm, I pull out the heavy thick-link silver chain with the half-moon. ‘Shoot,’ I mustn’t forget to take it to reception straight after the meeting. I fold it back into my pocket, retrieve my balm, roll it onto my lips. Then, with my head held high and my shoulders back, I try to look far more confident than I feel. I see Amanda’s glass corner office ahead of me. I stride purposefully towards it. My mission to get finally get this promotion to feature writer is well and truly underway.
